Jessica Millman,12, held her breath as she waited to see which direction the conversation with her mother, Jennifer, was headed. “I read an article about a girl whose mom came to her one day and let her know that all the money she would get from her bat mitzvah she would have to donate,” said… Read More

“Something for everyone” seems to be the common refrain among caterers in 2015 in their approach to preparing for bar and bat mitzvah celebrations. Caterers in Baltimore often cook for several dozen parties per year, customizing the menu in such a way that attempts to meet the needs of each set of guests. Owings Mills… Read More

There are two things Matt Biers-Ariel never expected would happen to him. The first thing is his son telling him he didn’t want to have a bar mitzvah. The second is riding a tandem bike 3,800 miles across the country with his wife, Djina, and children Yonah and Solomon. Readers find out how one led… Read More

Anne King, 64, is a native Baltimorean and has attended Chizuk Amuno Congregation all her life. She went to Hebrew school, had her bat mitzvah and saw the congregation move from its downtown location on Eutaw Place to Stevenson Road in Pikesville. After getting married (her husband also had his bar mitzvah at Chizuk Amuno),… Read More

For the second time, Herbert Bergunder and his family traveled to Israel this August to celebrate a bar mitzvah. “Sometimes a bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah in the U.S. makes a child seem very big, and religion seems beside the point,” Bergunder, a Baltimore attorney and member at Baltimore Hebrew Congregation, said. “In Israel …… Read More

Next to a wedding, a child’s bar or bat mitzvah is one of the most important days in his or her life, but it can also be one of the most costly. Families are faced with the challenge of planning a party that is entertaining and memorable, but also does not break the bank. Take… Read More

Having special needs, whether cognitive, developmental or physical, doesn’t exclude children and their families from wanting to make b’nai mitzvah, but it does make it more challenging. Lori and David Burman have two sons, Jacob, 16 and Evan, 13. Evan had his bar mitzvah this past August, despite struggling with dyslexia. But Lori said that… Read More

Bat mitzvahs are a common occurrence in countries such as the United States and Israel, but what about Bolivia, Honduras and Cochabamba? “Today I am a women: Stories of Bat Mitzvah around the world” by Barbara Vinick and Shulamit Reinharz shares different stories of bat mitzvahs held from a variety of backgrounds. The stories give… Read More

Putting aside the fact you are catering mostly to teenagers, planning a bar or bat mitzvah is similar to planning a wedding. Where are you holding the ceremony? What kind of food are you serving? Do you have a photographer? It can all be summed up in one word: stressful. “The Bar and Bat Mitzvah… Read More

Rabbis often speak of the magic of Torah, but one local bar mitzvah boy took the sentiment to heart and brought Torah lessons and sleight of hand to residents of the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Village. Natan Gamliel, a 13-year-old eighth-grader at Krieger Schechter Day School who lained three aliyot and the haftorah at his… Read More